Guest ss556 Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Alan has had fleas on and off for a long time now. I have 2 cats that are indoor/outdoor. They are probably the culprits. I have not seen any fleas in my house except for those I have found on Alan. I have only found flea dirt once or twice on him. I cannot pet/comb my cats - they are unfriendly, especially one. I used diatomaceous earth on my front and back yards and in the room that the cats sleep in most. I even sprinkled some this morning on them and some on Alan. Alan has been treated with capstar twice, frontline plus one (had a sensitivity reaction) and advantage twice. This past weekend I took 4 fleas off of him and one tonight, which I lost in my house. He is licking his tail raw. He is sensitive from being allergic to the bites and runs around going crazy at times. I have Relief spray. He gets benedryl a lot. WHAT DO I DO NEXT? Do I give the cats flea baths? Can Alan have a flea bath? Do I bomb the house? Do I treat the lawn? Thank goodness it's not a real infestation. My vet wants me to pick up Comfortis tomorrow. I could use some help as I am overwhelmed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest longdogs Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Can you scrag the cats, with help if necessary, and treat them with Revolution or another topical product? Frontline spray is another alternative. It sounds like you are not going to win this particular battle unless they get the treatment too. One way is to confine them in a carrier or box while you spray or spot-treat them. There also used to be products you could add to their food or water but I've never tried them. Alan will need regular treatment with Advantage or Revolution or similar every 4 weeks, or every 2 weeks if you think it necessary. You can also use puppy-safe flea powder on him. He can be bathed in a puppy-safe flea shampoo provided you haven't just used a topical flea-killer on him, otherwise you will wash it off and he won't benefit from it. It should be OK to bathe him a week after application. There's lots of advice on this forum, just do a search on 'flea'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 I assume you're not using Advantage Plus or something similar on your cats? Cats get heartworm too--so if they're going outside, they really need to be on a heartworm and flea/tick preventative. I'd start with preventing them from getting on the cats (personally I would convert them to indoor only cats, as there are far too many dangers outside in our modern world) in the first place. Yes, you can bath the cats--but I think that's best left to a professional unless you're very brave! Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ss556 Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 The cats are being treated with Advantage, and yes, indoor cats would be better. One is 15 and the other is 11 and they have been going outdoors for years already. My vet did not think that the cats or Alan need a flea bath. He wants me to treat the yard, the house and give all pets Advantage. The spray can for the house is EctoKyl IGR and for outside he said Duratrol. I hate chemicals and this has been a major inconvenience, to say the least. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duncan41 Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 Living in Florida presents a 24/7/365 challenge of flea control. All of the previous suggestions are good ones - topical treatments for all is a good place to start. If you would like to combo with a more immediate result, you might consider DeFlea shampoo. I have one girl who is a bug magnet - fleas, mosquitos, flies, gnats - if it bites, it's after her. Poor baby! She was quite a mess earlier this year. Like you, I would rather avoid all chemicals, but realized that a topical is the best way to go for her, her sister and the 3 cats. After much research, I found DeFlea and have been very, very pleased with the results. I now buy it by the gallon and dilute it myself. Good luck! Quote Linda, Mom to Fuzz, Barkley, and the felines Miss Kitty, Simon and Joseph.Waiting at The Bridge: Alex, Josh, Harley, Nikki, Beemer, Anna, Frank, Rachel, my heart & soul, Suze and the best boy ever, Dalton.<p> ....for all those hounds that are sick, hurt, lost or waiting for their forever homes. SENIORS ROCK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sheila Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 If you really want to get rid of fleas once and for all I think you really have to use the dreaded chemicals. The organic stuff just doesn't work once you have an infestation. I have a cat that I would really love to be an indoor cat but she is quite resourceful about sneaking her way outside. One yr she tore out the screens on several windows in the house to escape and she brought fleas back in droves. I ended up having to do the following: put the cat in the garage put the dogs in the car set off flea bombs in the house take the dogs to the park for a few hrs come home and open the house flea bathe the dogs in a kiddie pool outside while DD vacuumed the house bring the cat in and risk life and limb giving her a flea bath Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhounds Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 Just wanted to mention--you should treat you pets for tapeworms---fleas are the carriers--yuck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KansasGrey Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 Years ago when I lived in Orlando my cats and dog were infested with fleas. We tried everything from constant flea baths to diatomaceous earth. Nothing worked. Finally we bought something at the vet's for $70 that you sprinkle on your carpets and sweep it in. It worked the same way as diatomaceous earth in that it killed the flea in the lavae stage. Within a couple weeks the fleas were gone and never returned for the five years we lived there. We had used so many chemicals I was worried it would affect the animals later. The cat that was then two or three is now 18. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ss556 Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 It's truly a BIG nuisance. No one ever mentioned tapeworms. How do you treat that? That would be just horrible. Alan was finally doing overall better and then the fleas. Meanwhile, I don't know another person who is dealing with fleas by me. Go figure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 (edited) Tapeworms aren't that bad and are rarely debilitating in dogs. Dunno about cats. Simple pill from the vet. I wouldn't treat for tapeworm unless you see some in the poop. At this point you will want to treat the house and the yard, and you will have to use chemicals. I *would* recommend getting all the pets in the home on monthly preventive (Advantage or similar) and planning to use it during the warm months every year. Here in northern IL I start treating the pets somewhere between March 1 and April 1, depending on the weather and our activities. Where you live, you might be able to get away with treating every 45-60 days rather than every month. Reason I suggest this (treating everybody, every year, during the warm months) is, the chemicals you'll expose them to that way, for the entire year, are orders of magnitude below what's needed to treat an active infestation once. Don't envy you. Best luck getting rid of the little boogers. Edited August 28, 2008 by Batmom Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FullMetalFrank Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 I'd consider taking the pets either to the groomer or vets for a professional de-fleaing while you bomb the house. Stay gone the required amount of time; go home and air out the house and vacuum; throw away the vacuum bag! Then go pick up the pets. A variation on Sheila's plan. Also spray the yard with a good insecticide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cris_M Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 I live in GA which is up there in the top 10 of high flea infestation areas. Here, Frontline and Advantage are a waste of money. Vectra 3D is a new product that works amazingly well. Duncan gets very few fleas, but my son's Lab gets covered in them. The Lab goes in and out of his house at will and lives with 2 indoor/outdoor cats. And, my son thinks a vacuum cleaner is an evil alien sent to destroy earth. I treated both dogs 45+ days ago and they are both still flea free. The Vectra 3D isn't more expensive than the Frontline or Advantage, but it works so much better that I am sold on it. Maybe you could ask the vet for one application to see if Alan is sensitive to it before you make an investment in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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